Daniel 6: Witness in a changing world.

So Daniel is a bit older, now.  He has lived through exile, then been picked out for special training –like a university education – in Babylon.  He has had a great career as a government advisor, followed by a time of obscurity; then been appointed “third highest ruler in the kingdom” (coming after Belshazzar the Prince regent and his absentee father Nabunaid), only hours before Belshazzar and Babylon fell into the hands of the new boy on the block, the Persian empire of Cyrus and Darius. 

There is in other words a massive political & cultural change... in 24 hours, everything changed.  A new centre of gravity in Susa. A new government; a new ruler; a new administration;  a whole new concept of government, “The law of the Medes and the Persians” that even the King had to obey;  and new words like “Satrap”.  It was not long before Daniel became one of three governors who were in charge of those “Satraps.” 

We are living through times of change, and the pace and scope of that change is faster and deeper. 
In the past fifteen years, a number of things have happened that have each, in their own way, changed the world:
the bombings on 11th September 2001;
the global financial crisis in 2008-9;
the British vote to leave the EU (I refuse to use a word that makes something momentous sound like the latest breakfast cereal.) 

Attitudes to justice, faith, family life, marriage, sexuality & gender are changing across the Western world, and those changes are being enshrined in law. 

Underlying all of that, in the realm of how people think, we are living through the move from "Modern" to something else: we sometimes call it "postmodern".  That affects everything.

• Suspicion towards authority (church, politics, police) and  absolutes (like absolute truth)   As part of that, Spirituality is valued (because it is do-it-yourself), while dogma is rejected (because it is authoritative).

• Literature and language are “deconstructed”.  That means that instead of having a clear “meaning,” a book or a film – or even a word –can mean what the hearer wants it to mean to them.  So if someone says that Sally's cakes or Ruth’s shortbread are wicked,  that's a compliment!

• Pessimism... instead of hope. We used to believe science could sort everything, Now - despite the confidence with which the new atheism makes its pronouncements - nobody is  convinced that science can save mankind.

• Global culture: Coca-cola, Macdonalds, Facebook. We now live in a truly global village.

Pic: Buky Schwartz CreativeCommons SA2..5

• The internet changes how people's minds work, how they (we) learn & relate, and technology gets smaller, smarter.

• Double-coding: buildings made of concrete & glass have a classical façade. People can be scientific and superstitious; secularism & spirituality can co-exist.

Change is the one thing that isn't changing.

Now which is right? The Modern world or the postmodern one?  Daniel's experience was that both the big cultures he lived with, have strengths & weaknesses.  Under this new government, some things remained the same.  There was still an undercurrent of opposition and even hatred towards God, his way of living, and his people.  It has been that way since almost the beginning of time. This time it didn't come from a power crazed king, but from fellow governors. Jealousy and suspicion towards this wise and experienced Jew came to a head when the King recognised Daniel's ability and integrity and decided to make his the chief of the three governors.  The only way they could bring Daniel down was by finding fault,and try as they may, they couldn't find any faults, except... he prayed every day, facing Jerusalem.  He had always put his God first.  So all they needed to do was set up a situation where it would be obvious that he put his God first,before the King... and they would have him.  You know the story of the decree they got the king to sign: he was quite flattered by this idea; and didn't see it as a trap for Daniel. 

In every culture there area strengths and weaknesses;things that help the church's witness and thing that get in the way.  And in many situations of opposition to us as individuals or as a church in the nation, the roots are a messy mixture of idolatry, jealousy, conniving and self-interest.  That's the way of it in every culture.  It's not always that people hate God; they simply love themselves.

The Law of the Medes and the Persians.
There was a system of thought underlying the Persian rule. It was more than the emperor's whim. he was at the mercy of the system. Nebuchadnezzar threw Shadrach, Meshach & Abednego into the furnace because he was angry at them. Darius threw Daniel to the lions because he was cornered by the system.  Babylon was at the mercy of one man.  Persia was at the mercy of a committee.  So Daniel was thrown into the lion's den.  The law would be satisfied.  Daniel would be out of the way, and the state would save a couple of quid in lion food. 

We live in a world where the law is often used and manipulated by the powerful for political ends: bolstering a secular agenda, redefining how family life works, or making the rich richer and the poor poorer.  We have to know when to remain silent and when to protest..  And in a democracy, we have to make our voice heard to seek for a godly and just society.

So How did Daniel survive the transition and thrive in the new realities of the Persian  empire?  How did he survive a sharp cultural change and opposition enshrined in law? 

1. Diligent service.  Whatever the culture he lived in, Daniel was prepared to do the best he could.  If he had read the message Jeremiah sent to the Jewish exiles (Jer 29. 7: “Seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile”)  He  spoke Aramaic like a Babylonian. He knew and understood the Babylonians and their culture. He did it in Nebuchadnezzar’s Babylon; he was prepared to do it for Darius' Persia.
2. Devoted surrender.  Did you ever wonder why when Belshazzar was killed, Daniel,the next man in line of authority survived?  The answer is that he wasn't Babylonian.  He was Jewish. Yes,  he was always prepared to do the very best he could to serve the country he had been obliged to live in for most of his life.  But he didn't do it for Babylon,he did it for the Lord. Throughout his life,every day,three times, he would go upstairs,to a room in his house that faced south by south east,where Jerusalem was.  like Daniel, we serve Scotland or Britain or Canada or France or Iraq,but our real citizenship is elsewhere. our real loyalty is elsewhere. Our citizenship is in heaven and our loyalty is to the Lord.   This wasn’t just about keeping the law.  It was an act of love.  On Friday night I heard a wonderful testimony from a young woman who was brought up in a strict Bangladeshi Muslim family in the UK. At one point in her life she was trying to be a good Muslim, and wearing a Hijab.  She recalled on a hot day, remarking to her friend (also wearing a Hijab) “Don't you find it hot in the Hijab?”  and her friend replying “Nargis, it is not as hot as hell-fire!”  That's law without promise,without love, without relationship,without grace, without Spirit.  That's not the way Daniel lived. But for Daniel it wasn’t about law it was about life and love and loyalty.    And today, there is a new covenant and a new law: the law of the spirit of life in Jesus Christ has set us free from the law of sin and death.  

Picture © G Lilly

3. Disciplined spirituality.  And every day, although he couldn't see it,he would pray facing the temple in Jerusalem.   Discipline in finding time to be with God,will help us know what he is saying and to survive the challenges.
4. Dependence on the Spirit.  Some clever people question how true the stories in Daniel are.  Partly because there are supposedly gaps in Daniels understanding of the history he lived through.  But the more that is discovered about archaeology,the more the historical bits of Daniel are confirmed.  And there are these miracle stories: four young men eating simply and looking healthier; all the dreams and interpretations; the burning fiery furnace; the writing on the wall, the lions den.  But if you take the miracles out of Daniel you're left with a shell, something threadbare.  Pam yesterday found that her walking socks were worn out; there were no holes,but the wool was gone and all that was left was the thin nylon webbing. It was precisely the work of God's holy Spirit in Daniel's life that made him able to survive and thrive.   Christianity is not about keeping the law of God.  It is about living under the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus, and thus being free from the law of sin and death.  Daniel did what he did not just as a law-keeping godly man,but as a man of faith and a man full of the Holy Spirit.

Conclusion...
So why in the end did Darius change the law of the Medes and the Persians?  Simply because he saw, in front of his own eyes, the visible demonstration that the law of the Medes and the Persians didn't have the last word. There was a greater power.   But Daniel knew that already.  And it is as we can demonstrate to the people around us that our God is able to change our lives, that we will see the lives of others changed.
 © Gilmour Lilly October 2016